what to look for when buying a newer truck w/ ISX?

[ScarfaceTrucking]

hello everyone i need some help im thinking of buying a modern truck now that there are some good deals out there and dealers are desperate to sell, i hope you guys can chime in some help.

im looking for a kw or pete with a cummins, i know many are using paccar but i live in the middle of nowhere and no one around here even knows how to work on paccar except the stealerships, so i have to go with cummins.

i been told the cm2250 and cm2350 are "high compression engines"? and they dont like to be turned up which can lead to blown engine, and i should be on the lookout for badly tuned trucks because of this reason is this true?

also should i prioritize a truck with a APU? because from what i understand the emission system and truck in general really suffer from long idle times, so a truck with an APU would be less chance of it being a lemon right?

all these trucks for sale are company trade ins so its a giant gamble but any tips/tricks i can get on what to look for would be welcomed.

thanks to all hope to learn from you guys.

[Waterloo]

Quite a bit to look for, especially if it is fleet truck and more than likely not maintained properly. Which, I don't know of any companies out here that actually maintain these trucks they way they should be.

It is a crap shoot, no matter the manufacturer. There is a small carrier up here in Michigan that my buddy works for. This guy has all Petes and KW's, 2015 - 2019, PACCAR motors, and everyone of them is in one state of broke down or like the one my buddy is currently in, a blown head along with a leaking water pump and other issues related to the head gasket failure, and he is out there running it...

He has poured his urine in the coolant jug, two cases of Arizona Ice Tea, more water than Carter has liver pills, occasional jug of coolant and even a jug of Mountain Dew to run this truck to Oregon and back... The guy could write a book on this adventure!

Here is his coolant sensor in his last bottle of Arizona Iced Tea...



This is in a 2015 KW 680, right around 600,000 miles...

My point is, any new truck is a gamble.

Find the specs that work for what you want to haul, gearing and so forth. I personally would avoid an automatic, they are expensive to repair and the gearing is never that great which in my opinion can shorten the longevity of these already sketchy motors.

Mileage will not really matter, see above, and be aware of the fuel pumps, which is something I would take care of immediately upon purchase. Either make sure it was rebuilt or replaced and or bite the bullet and just do it.

The laundry list can be long on what you will need to fix and or repair, so be ready to turn a wrench. You will need a copy of Insite and the Inline Reader, without that, you are dead in the water. Emissions, if you do not go to California or a few other NE states, I would go see Mr Hagg and kill that monster immediately, and let him go through the truck.

If you keep the emissions, odds are it is time to replace many of the components, which can easily run into the tens of thousands of dollars.

Then, we have the motor, I am sure it will need an overhead, fuel pump, along with all of the original factory sensors replaced along with an EGR Tuneup and good cleaning... And be prepared to do an in frame, that is a sad and ugly truth with these new motors, they have roughly a 500,000 mile service life...

I don't know what to tell you, just be prepared, and pray you get a good one. There are some out there, but again it is a bit of a crap shoot.

And if someone has been in the ECM, I would not walk away, I would RUN.

[ScarfaceTrucking]

thanks for all the info, would you say the 2350 is usually better reliability than the 2250?

also for the cummins can i not use a nexiq 2 with insite? or it needs to be cummins inline?

also another idea maybe staying away from 10 speed trucks? since i would assume those who drive 13 speeds maybe take care more of the equipment more chance of it being a o/o truck.

[Waterloo]

I would go with the 2350 over the 2250, they are both essentially the same motor. The 2250 was the test bed, the 2350 is a tad more refined... And I'm blowing smoke out my ass, I would prefer the CM-871, but then you are looking at an older truck.

Yes on the Nexiq, but only if it is the real unit, not some Chinese knock off, plenty written on that subject here on the site.

Personally, I would prefer a 13 or 18 over a 10, but that is just me. It is rare to find any 13 or 18 speeds out here anymore, as these new automatics and 2:01 gear ratios are all the rage. The issues are not necessarily the transmissions, but the drivers. These manufacturers, dealers and companies routinely instruct the drivers to lug the motors. When they lug the motors, the forces being applied in the motor internally create havoc and shorten the life of the motor rather quickly. The liners bust loose and take out the heads. The reason you so many of these newer trucks with few miles having already been in framed.

As far as an Owner Operator truck, most of them drive the same way the company drivers do, I have yet to meet anyone out here, owner operator, that knows spit about their Cummins motor. Well, I did meet one guy up in ND, he was more than likely a member of this here site, very up to speed, but that is very rare out here.

And then we have the fuel pumps... That will need to be addressed too. So, plan on spending some money on parts, and tools. Do not depend on these dealers to keep your truck in operational condition, the same goes for warranties, they ain't worth spit.

[ScarfaceTrucking]

(06-26-2020 )Waterloo Wrote:  I would go with the 2350 over the 2250, they are both essentially the same motor. The 2250 was the test bed, the 2350 is a tad more refined... And I'm blowing smoke out my ass, I would prefer the CM-871, but then you are looking at an older truck.

Yes on the Nexiq, but only if it is the real unit, not some Chinese knock off, plenty written on that subject here on the site.

Personally, I would prefer a 13 or 18 over a 10, but that is just me. It is rare to find any 13 or 18 speeds out here anymore, as these new automatics and 2:01 gear ratios are all the rage. The issues are not necessarily the transmissions, but the drivers. These manufacturers, dealers and companies routinely instruct the drivers to lug the motors. When they lug the motors, the forces being applied in the motor internally create havoc and shorten the life of the motor rather quickly. The liners bust loose and take out the heads. The reason you so many of these newer trucks with few miles having already been in framed.

As far as an Owner Operator truck, most of them drive the same way the company drivers do, I have yet to meet anyone out here, owner operator, that knows spit about their Cummins motor. Well, I did meet one guy up in ND, he was more than likely a member of this here site, very up to speed, but that is very rare out here.

And then we have the fuel pumps... That will need to be addressed too. So, plan on spending some money on parts, and tools. Do not depend on these dealers to keep your truck in operational condition, the same goes for warranties, they ain't worth spit.

im not really looking for a newer truck at all, problem is that pre-emission trucks have become so rare that when they do show up they are either all beat up and need 20-30k in repairs or they are super expensive almost as expensive as a 10 year younger truck.

trust me man i have looked and still looking i love the early isx trucks but its such a pain to look around for a decent older truck these days.

[Waterloo]

(06-27-2020 )ScarfaceTrucking Wrote:  im not really looking for a newer truck at all, problem is that pre-emission trucks have become so rare that when they do show up they are either all beat up and need 20-30k in repairs or they are super expensive almost as expensive as a 10 year younger truck.

trust me man i have looked and still looking i love the early isx trucks but its such a pain to look around for a decent older truck these days.

I hear you there, it is such a crap shoot out here with these EPA motors. These motors are so sketchy, poor quality engineering, manufacturing, parts, driver abuse, etc. No one seems to care anymore, and then we get stuck repairing their screwups or laziness. No matter what you buy, plan on spending at least $10,000 to $20,000 in short order immediately after you purchase or soon after you put it into service, unless you get extremely lucky and find one that has been properly taken care of, like one from a member here. Sadly, that is just the nature of the beast out here.

[amermextrucker]

If once you have narrowed it down to 1-3 trucks , pull an oil sample , but make sure it's done in your presence. If you're looking at a truck at a dealer they should have them on hand, write the engine serial # and vin # and perform your own investigation. Also after that a dyno to verify the truck operates properly under a load can give you " some" peace of mind. And yes have some funds on hand to perform what Waterloo stated. This site and its knowledgeable members will provide answers to any questions you might have. Just my 2. Good luck.

[tree98]

(06-28-2020 )amermextrucker Wrote:  If once you have narrowed it down to 1-3 trucks , pull an oil sample , but make sure it's done in your presence. If you're looking at a truck at a dealer they should have them on hand, write the engine serial # and vin # and perform your own investigation. Also after that a dyno to verify the truck operates properly under a load can give you " some" peace of mind. And yes have some funds on hand to perform what Waterloo stated. This site and its knowledgeable members will provide answers to any questions you might have. Just my 2. Good luck.

Most used truck dealers aren't going to let you do these things. It's much easier for them to just sell the truck to someone a lot less picky. And rest assured they WILL sell it to someone.

[ScarfaceTrucking]

buying a used truck is really crazy these days, with all the problems that pop up in these engines you JUST know the last owner tried to get rid of it because of an issue, then you have the fleet trade-ins which are trucks that were totally dogged and had super high maintenance intervals so the soot wrecked havoc on the engine.

honestly if i had the time i rather just buy an old beat fld and spend the money to make it good, but then you also got the government cracking down im pretty sure pre-2000 year trucks will be banned from the road soonish not worth the risk.

im thinking of just waiting until i find a kw or pete with a cracked block and get it super cheap and just start from 0 at least i know what i got.